Vietnamese Hairstyles

By River Lin

Because Vietnamese hair is heavy, straight and resistant to curling, hairstyles have traditionally been long and straight or cut into a layered or shaped style that works well with the hair’s tendency to lie flat. New technology offers successful curls, and with Asian hair coming into the forefront of fashion with celebrities like Lucy Liu, Sandra Oh and Gwendoline Yeo, Vietnamese women are enjoying new hairstyle trends.

Leaf Cut

According to Vietnamese hairstylist Ngoc Huynh, the most popular Vietnamese hairstyle is what she calls the Leaf Cut. “This style builds layers into a pointed shape, making the most of the hair’s natural body and thickness.” The Leaf Cut is sharp, fashionable and easy to care for, making it a popular style among Vietnamese women who like their hair short.

Long and Curly

Long is still very popular among Vietnamese women and with new technology, curly is now a viable option. China now manufactures a “digital hot perm” machine that can be programmed to produce the exact amount of heat and control the distribution of chemicals so that even stubbornly straight hair takes to the perm. The result is soft waves or tight curls depending on the size of the rollers. Vietnamese women are now enjoying a wavy twist to their long hair. Long and curly is quickly becoming one of the hottest new trends in Vietnamese hairstyles.

Color

Stylist Huynh says that “color can provide a rejuvenating change of pace.” Copper and dark brown are the most popular as these shades complement the Vietnamese skin tone.

Double-sided coloring is making a bold statement on the runways and is sweeping through the cities quickly taking over as the newest trend in hair coloring. The underside of the hair is dyed a dark brown while the top layers are dyed a lighter color. As the hair moves the colors shimmer against each other, creating a vibrant look. Huynh says this coloring is dramatic when long hair is styled in an attractive up do.

Khan Dong

Finally, Vietnamese women still enjoy a traditional style called the Khan Dong. This is traditionally a piece of black fabric that is wrapped around long hair, forming a tube-like covering. The fabric-wrapped hair is then wrapped around the crown of the head, leaving a ponytail that hangs at the side of the head. Vietnamese women are enjoying some creative new versions of this with different kinds of fabric and unwrapped hair hanging out of the side to reveal richly colored hair.